New Zealand chase historic series win

Kimberley, Jan 21: Saturday’s victory over South Africa would have brought plenty of relief but the pressure will be on New Zealand to hold their nerve once more in the remaining two ODIs. New Zealand have never won an ODI series in South Africa, and if Brendon McCullum’s team can get it right on Tuesday at the De Beers Diamond Oval in Kimberley, it will be a memorable way to round off what has been a difficult tour.New Zealand have only won three of 19 ODIs in South Africa against the hosts, and following the hammering they received in the Tests, a series win could be seen as a big step forward. New Zealand’s batsmen are often criticised for their impatience, and it is this trait that will be tested in the rest of the series. A chase of 209 turned into a mess after New Zealand lost their openers in ten deliveries on Saturday, and it needed a patient and simple approach from James Franklin to steer them to a one-wicket win.Another such batting effort would not leave New Zealand much room to breathe. As Franklin put it after his Man-of-the-Match performance, the team is under no illusions. “We have to be almost at our best, if not our best, to compete with these guys. Particularly over here in South Africa, we don’t have a great track record here in one-day cricket, now we have got a real chance of maybe winning a one-day series.”New Zealand’s top order was particularly shaky, and from 4 for 2 it was BJ Watling who held the batting together wi th 45 off 78 balls. It is this approach which New Zealand could do with from the first ball. So Martin Guptill, whose two-ball duck extended his poor run on tour since he stroked a superb century in the first Twenty20 on December 23, and Rob Nicol will be under plenty of pressure. The rest of the team should stay the same. After his superb debut 4 for 20 that helped bowl South Africa out for 208, expectations will soar from New Zealand’s latest fast-bowling prospect, Mitchell McClanaghan.

UNEMPLOYMENT ‘BONANZA’

ALTAF BABA

Srinagar, Jan 21: The Service Selection Board has earned at least Rs 3 crores by selling 1,53,000 forms to the unemployed youth of Jammu and Kashmir in the past 25 days. But despite charging the hefty More

Jammu, Jan 21: The Minister for Rural Development and Panchayats, Ali Muhammad Sagar Monday said that the government is committed to hold elections to the Block Development Councils (BDCs) as soon as possible More

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Lahore, Jan 21: A day after Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde accused BJP and RSS of running terror camps and indulging in Hindu terror, LeT founder Hafiz Saeed said that Indian organisations were "involved More

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Let’s encourage students to question the conventional wisdom and discover the meaning of personal and civic values

QUALITY EDUCATION

PUPINDER SINGH BALI

Everyone here in Kashmir would agree that our schools should nurture good values and attitudes in students. This general concern has influenced the school curriculum. The student, as a result, often receives More